Raiders Run All Over Teaneck in Season Opener

Defending their Group 3 state championship, Drew Gibbs' Ramapo Raiders made a statement Saturday night in the 2010 season opener by scoring six touchdowns and soaring to a 42-27 home win over the highly-touted Teaneck Highwaymen.

After surrendering a kick return touchdown on the opening play of the game, the Raiders bounced back by scoring the next 21 points of the contest. In a high-scoring first half, senior captain halfback-safety Jack Bandazian and senior halfback-defensive end Scott Kuenzle each found pay-dirt along the left side of the goal line over a span of four minutes to send the home crowd into a frenzy.

Following a near interception, the Raiders forced the Highwaymen offense into a three and out, which allowed their own offense to begin driving from within Teaneck territory. The Raiders capitalized on their starting field position by pounding the ball straight at the Teaneck defense with their explosive duo of backs, Bandazian and Kuenzle. Kuenzle finally punched the ball over the goal line three yards out, as Ramapo's offensive line opened up wide gaps throughout the drive, bullying the Highwaymen's defensive front for the go-ahead score.

"We have two number one backs on this team," Gibbs said. "We'll certainly be sharing the work load between them in order to keep them both fresh as the season grinds on."

Following a dominant series by the Raiders' defense, which resulted in a second consecutive three and out for the Highwaymen, senior wide-receiver-defensive back Matt Bunting raced in untouched on Teaneck's punter, blocking the kick before picking it up and racing in for a 21-7 Ramapo lead.

Teaneck responded quickly, though, beginning their ensuing drive with a 30-yard pass completion to midfield. After an 8-yard carry by senior halfback-safety Nevon Williams, who scored all four of Teaneck's touchdowns, the crowd's noise caused the offensive line to jump offside twice in a row, nearly halting the Highwaymen's march down field. Nevertheless, Williams made up for the lost yardage by breaking consecutive 10-yard carries on sweep plays to the outside, before then finishing the drive with a short touchdown run to make it a one-score game again with 8:53 remaining in the first half.

That was the last time the Highwaymen would be within a single touchdown of tying it, though, as Ramapo quickly responded with a kick return by senior wide receiver-defensive back Tyler Speziale that set the Raiders' offense up with promising field position again at the 45-yard line. Capitalizing on a short field, Bandazian stiff-armed one defender to the ground before finding a seam and sprinting 50 yards for the score. With the chant "You can't stop us" emerging from the crowd, the Raiders now enjoyed a comfortable two-touchdown lead again at 28-14.

"Our offensive line did an incredible job of creating lanes tonight," Bandazian said. "A lot of the credit goes to them. They opened up holes for me to run through and controlled the line of scrimmage from the first snap."

With time winding down in the first half, senior wide receiver-defensive back Chris Colaneri came down with a leaping interception on a pass intended for Teaneck's primary wide receiver senior Tyriek Harrison. The rambunctious home crowd had little time to cheer, though, as Teaneck's standout defensive back Anthony Upshaw immediately picked off quarterback Tyler Ward's next pass to shift the momentum back in favor of the Highwaymen.

Williams then broke free for what would have been a long 68-yard touchdown, but Teaneck's offensive line jumped the snap again, negating a much needed late half score. Instead, the Highwaymen offense was forced to punt the ball back to Ramapo with 2:43 left on the clock, leaving plenty of time for a late march.

The Raiders, as they did with regularity throughout the game, made the most of Teaneck's penalty. On a deep pass over the cornerback and underneath the safety, Ward found a small opening in the secondary to connect with wide receiver-defensive back Chris Thompson for a 34-yard gain, placing the ball at the Teaneck 32-yard line with 32 seconds remaining in the half. Ward then fired a hard strike to Bunting on a deep post route, seeing that his receiver had gained separation in coverage. Ward's ball met Bunting right in stride at the goal line, giving Ramapo a commanding 35-14 lead at the half.

After possession changed hands several times with substantial ball movement but no points to begin the third quarter, Colaneri snatched his second interception of the night to put a damper on a potential Teaneck scoring drive. Bandazian then completed the 14-point swing by finding an opening and sprinting 80 yards for his third touchdown of the night.

Displaying blazing breakaway speed, power to shrug off would-be tacklers, and shiftiness to dance through narrow spaces, Bandazian frustrated Teaneck's defense from start to finish, piling up 151 rushing yards to go along with his three rushing touchdowns.

Williams, who was equally impressive at carrying the ball for Teaneck, scored on a 6-yard rush to cut the margin to 42-21 late in the fourth quarter. Teaneck linebacker Daryian Miles then blocked Ramapo's first punt attempt of the game, setting the Highwaymen offense up inside the Raiders' 25-yard line. After a series of rushes, Williams finally punched the ball over the goal line, but two more minutes ticked off the clock before then, leaving the Highwaymen with no choice but to onside kick. A blocked extra point kept the score at 42-27, and with Teaneck's onside kick attempt unsuccessful, the Raiders watched time wind down on their first win of the new season.

"This was a nice early test for us," Gibbs said. "We did a good job of preventing their standout players from changing the outcome of the game and won the battle on the line of scrimmage. We'll just have to continue working and get ready for the next one."